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Sunday, August 4, 2013

CPG Marketing Trends: Target in Beta with New Couponing Mobile App

If you’re anything like a standard consumer these days, you’re looking to save some money on commonly purchased items or even a splurge on a new product, you’re about to fall in love with Target (more than you probably already have).

Target recently joined forces with Facebook to launch a new mobile couponing app to address the desire of their loyal customer base for discounts and “rewards” for shopping.

The app, called “Cartwheel,” is designed to add gamification to saving in store, and encourages consumers to find deals, share those deals and save. It is currently available for download in beta form on Target’s Facebook page.

The app works by allowing you to scroll through categories of products and add discount cards to a feed similar to a Pinterest board and it’s user friendly and easy to use. There are even collections of boards for 4thof July, Women’s Must Haves and Fast Freezer Meals sponsored by Nestle to aggregate related discounts.

As a user, collecting your savings in one place on your already attached-at-the-hip mobile device is hugely beneficial. The best part about the app is the convenience at checkout. All of your collected savings go into one bucket with one barcode to scan at the register. Any items you’ve purchased will be discounted with one simple swipe of a scanner. Cartwheel is taking coupon clipping to an entirely new level.

Add in the fact that brands can sponsor a “collection” within the app and you’ve just boosted the content you can provide to consumers and directly translate that to in-store purchases.

It is foreseeable that retailers could free themselves from their huge printed circular budgets and move to more efficient and immediate mobile applications that bring together offers, information, rewards and convenience into one device.